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Dorrie Kehoe’s letter (“Cyclists should be licensed,” June 29) opines that bicyclists should be paying for the expense of striping existing roads. But she may not realize that those cyclists already pay taxes on the car they left at home, making room for other motorists by taking the bike instead; decreasing impact on the roads and the environment.

If enough commuters did the same, traffic congestion, irritation, and polluted air will be a thing of the past.

Cycling should be encouraged. Kehoe is correct that on crosswalks a pedestrian has the right of way. Cyclists don’t always respect this — nor do motorists, by the way.

Kehoe states that enforcement should not be optional, and indeed it isn’t. The Massachusetts Driver’s Manual has been updated, but what Kehoe considers hand-wringing and dithering is theimperative attempt to bring all users of the road up to speed — no pun intended.

Licensing cyclists is as feasible as relicensing all motorists. Don’t tax those that offer relief to congestion, tax the ones that impact our health and safety with unsustainable modes of transportation: Heavier, pollutant-emitting, blind-spotted trucks.